Triple Crown Champion
This article deals with the achievement as understood in professional wrestling in the United States. For the Japanese championship, which is counted as a single title, see AJPW Triple Crown Championship. In professional wrestling, a Triple Crown Champion is a term describing a wrestler who has won the three most prestigious belts of their promotion - typically a heavyweight belt, a tag team belt, and a second-tier belt. It is considered a great accomplishment to have won a triple crown. A "multiple triple crown" distinction also exists, with having won the three constituent titles at least a specified number of times. Only five wrestlers have managed to be a triple crown champion in multiple companies (six if you count CM Punk in OVW). Kurt Angle has accomplished this in WWE and TNA while Ric Flair, Chris Benoit, Bret Hart and Booker T are triple crown champions in WCW and WWE. WWE Triple Crown In World Wrestling Entertainment, the term Triple Crown Champion has traditionally been used to describe a wrestler who has won the WWE Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the Tag Team Championship. For a span of nearly 18 years, from 1979 up through 1997, these were the three championships of the WWF, and a wrestler who had won all three championships (not necessarily concurrently) was considered a "triple crown champion." In 1997, a fourth title, the European Championship was introduced. The European Championship, a singles title beneath the world and intercontinental titles, did not count for the purposes of designating triple crown champions, although a wrestler who had won all three primary titles and the European Championship would be recognized as a Grand Slam Champion. Following the brand extension in 2002, the World Heavyweight Championship and the WWE Tag Team Championship are alternate titles that can compose part of the Triple Crown. Official List of WWE Triple Crown Champions The following is a list of WWE Triple Crown Champions with dates indicating the wrestler's first reign with the respective championship. United States Championship After the brand extension, the Intercontinental Championship was re-introduced on RAW as the second tier championship exclusive to that brand, while the United States Championship was introduced on SmackDown as the second tier championship belonging to that brand. Despite the fact that it is a second tier championship, its status as a substitute in the Triple Crown Championship is unconfirmed due to the fact that neither the WWE nor PWI have ever explicitly stated that it is equal to the Intercontinental Championship. Potential Champions As of February 12, 2007, the following active (or semi-active) wrestlers are potential Triple Crown Champions. Those who would be considered potential Triple Crown Champions if the United States Championship is considered an equivalent to the Intercontinental Championship are not included in this list: Wrestlers currently working for or making appearances in WWE: * Kofi Kingston, Goldust & William Regal need a world title reign. *John Cena, Batista & The Undertaker need an Intercontinental title reign. WCW Triple Crown The World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Triple Crown consisted of the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (now WWE United States Championship) and the WCW World Tag Team Championship. When Bret Hart and Goldberg won the WCW World Tag Team Championship, they both became Triple Crown Champions at the same time. List of WCW Triple Crown Champions ECW Triple Crown The Extreme Championship Wrestling version of the Triple Crown consists of the ECW World Championship, ECW Tag Team Championship, and the ECW World Television Championship. List of ECW Triple Crown Champions The following is a list of ECW Triple Crown Champions. Only the date in which the wrestler's first title was won is indicated. Dates in bold indicate the title that was used to complete the Triple Crown. Note:Rob Van Dam's eligibility as an ECW Triple Crown Champion is debated because he won the ECW World Championship under the WWE brand and not the original promotion. TNA Triple Crown In Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), the TNA Triple Crown is an accolade bestowed upon those who win (not necessarily concurrently) all three championships regularly contested in TNA - the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, the TNA X Division Championship and (one-half of) the NWA World Tag Team Championship. List of TNA Triple Crown winners As of December 2006, there has been only one Triple Crown winner, A.J. Styles. In TNA Wrestling, it is possible to be a multi-time Triple Crown Champion, as noted by Mike Tenay and Don West alluding to Styles as a 2-Time, then a 3-time Triple Crown Champion. Styles is a 3-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, 6-time TNA X Division Champion and 4-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, making him a three-time Triple Crown winner. He completed his first Triple Crown in June 11, 2003 by winning his first NWA World Heavyweight Championship. To become a four-time TNA Triple Crown Champion, A.J. Styles needs to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship again. Potential Champions The following wrestlers require one more title in order to be awarded a Triple Crown. It should be noted that this list excludes NWA World Heavyweight Champions who held a pre-1975 version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship. The following wrestlers are potential Triple Crown Champions: * Christopher Daniels, Senshi, and Jerry Lynn each need an NWA World Heavyweight Title reign. * Abyss, and Shane Douglas need an X Division Title reign. ROH Triple Crown The Ring of Honor (ROH) Triple Crown originally was defined as the ROH World Championship, the ROH World Tag Team Championship, and the ROH World Television Championship.It was later amended so that the World Title and any combination of the TV, Tag Team or defunct ROH Pure Championship would qualify. Current ROH wrestlers who are one title away from the Triple Crown include: * Jay Briscoe, Davey Richards and Kevin Steen require the TV Championship (as the Pure Championship is no longer active). List of ROH Triple Crown Champions Ohio Valley Wrestling Ohio Valley Wrestling has a hierarchy similar to WWE, with a Heavyweight, Television, and Tag Team titles. This is a less notable triple crown, because it is technically on the independent circuit, but is possible to make an impressive resume for a wrestler. List of OVW Triple Crown Champions The following is a list of individuals who have won the OVW Heavyweight, Television, and Tag Team titles. References http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory WWE's Championship Chart. zh:Triple Crown Champion Category:Professional wrestling slang Category:Triple Crown championships